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  WINDY CITY TIMES

GLBTS and Aging: Testimony at Council
by Terri Worman and Perry Wiggins
2004-05-05

This article shared 2632 times since Wed May 5, 2004
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Following are excerpts from LGBT seniors advocates Terri Worman and Perry Wiggins' testimony at the Chicago Department on Aging's April 28 Public Hearings for the 2005-2007 Area Plan on Aging. The revised Area Plan on Aging will be available for review during the public comment period from May 26 to June 16, and written comments can be submitted up until 4 p.m. June 16. Worman and Perry Wiggins are co-conveners of the Chicago Task Force on LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) Aging.

The Chicago Task Force on LGBT Aging was first convened in January 1998 as part of Horizons' Mature Adult Program of Center on Halsted. The Task Force includes professionals in the field of aging services and advocacy; service providers in the LGBT community; and members of the senior LGBT community. Member agencies include the Secretary of State's Office, Chicago Department of Public Health, AARP Illinois, Council for Jewish Elderly, the Center on Halsted, Heartland Alliance, Howard Brown Health Center and the Chicago Department on Aging.

We are here this morning to urge that the Area Plan for the Chicago Department on Aging currently under consideration include recognition of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender seniors as a group with unique and specific needs, and whose community, though not geographically well-defined, is worthy of support and nurture.

As noted in the report Outing Age, published in 2001, 'lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) elders are among the most invisible of all Americans. Little is known about LGBT elders because of the widespread failure of governmental and academic researchers to include questions about sexual orientation or gender identity in studies of the aged. Legal and policy frameworks which have traditionally excluded LGBT people engender social and economic consequences that deny LGBT elders access to financial resources and community support networks.'

The recent needs assessment conducted by the Chicago Task Force on LGBT Aging estimates there may be as many as 40,000 LGBT adults over the age of 55 in the City of Chicago. And a recently released analysis of data from the 2000 U.S. Census reports that Cook County has 4,340 same-sex couples that include a partner over the age of 55. While this number reflects only a small portion of the LGBT senior community, it is interesting to note that Cook County has the second-highest number of these couples, second only to Los Angeles County. ...

The Task Force needs assessment also revealed that the specific needs of the Chicago LGBT seniors are both similar to and different from the needs of heterosexual seniors. Like older people in general, LGBT seniors expressed desires for comfortable, safe and friendly retirement housing; in-home support to allow persons to age in place as long as possible; advocacy with social service and healthcare professionals; access to preventative healthcare services; and a senior center for social and intellectual stimulation as well as a central point to access needed information and services.

Survey respondents identified a number of barriers to receiving appropriate care from both healthcare and social service providers that are specific to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Among these were the need for education among professionals regarding the extent to which unconscious or implied heterosexism is a barrier to open communication between providers and LGBT clients/patients regarding lifestyle and health issues. Findings suggest that health and service professionals often fail to recognize or acknowledge the significance of primary relationships that are like spousal relationships in a legal heterosexual marriage, and that networks of friends often function as extended family to LGBT seniors.

Several Task Force members attended the 2004 Joint Conference of the American Society on Aging and the National Council on the Aging in San Francisco. We were extremely excited to hear about the many partnerships that are growing across the country between Area Agencies on Aging, senior centers and LGBT seniors and their advocates. In Boston, a respite program was created for LGBT caregivers and a meal site set up, both supported with Title III funds. In southwestern Connecticut, the Area Agency on Aging and an older lesbian social group worked together to enhance awareness, identify needs, and develop an action plan ... .

It was reported that over 12 AAA's across the country are currently funding a variety of LGBT programming and services. Some Alzheimer Association chapters are now providing LGBT support groups. In Florida, an exclusive LGBT senior center and adult day center [was] created using federal funds. ...

We are proud to announce our second annual 'Living Well Under the Rainbow' LGBT Senior Health and Benefit Fair on May 15 and we would especially like to thank the Chicago Department on Aging for being there to bring the benefits eligibility checkup information and to be the speaker for our featured presentation on services and benefits for seniors 60 and older. ...

The Chicago Task Force on LGBT Aging invites you to attend the third in a series of quarterly Round Table Discussions on LGBT Aging. The Topic: LGBT Senior Housing in Chicago. Hear about: LGBT senior housing needs surveys in other communities and housing needs identified in recent Chicago survey. Talk about: your needs, desires, concerns, hopes for LGBT senior housing in Chicago. Connect with: organizations and individuals interested in working to develop LGBT senior housing in Chicago. Saturday, May 15, 1-3 p.m., Broadway Armory Park, 5917 N. Broadway (at Thorndale) following Living Well Under the Rainbow, LGBT Senior Health and Benefits Fair, Broadway Armory Park, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. For more information and to RSVP, call (312) 458-3610.


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